The Collectif Féminisme et Démocratie benefited from the support of staff in Montreal to develop its project. Twice we tried to submit projects but we were only successful the second time. I have to say that this would not have been possible if staff in Montreal had not provided some follow-up, because it is difficult to use the Internet if you're not sure of all the ramifications or what type of project could meet the stated objectives. We obviously needed support in that area.
And with only four regional offices, we expect there to be increased demand. As a result, we may well not benefit from this kind of very concrete support for future applications. As well, coming back to the question posed by the Honourable Marie Minna with respect to eligibility criteria, most of our work involves political action for women and providing women with the tools they need to be full participants in the democratic life of our society.
The new criteria do not recognize legitimate work of that kind. We want to be sure that we can participate fully in the economic, cultural and social life of this country, but we are told that as citizens, we have no right to a voice that can help us influence public policies and access our governments, to make our voices heard and to let them know what kinds of public policies we would like to see implemented. It is ridiculous to claim that all these rights — political, economic, social, cultural and civil — are not interconnected.